{"id":412243,"date":"2026-01-16T02:58:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-16T02:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/412243\/"},"modified":"2026-01-16T02:58:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T02:58:19","slug":"how-im-learning-to-hit-bombs-off-the-tee-this-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/412243\/","title":{"rendered":"How I’m learning to hit bombs off the tee this winter"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to\u00a0Play\u00a0Smart<\/a>, a regular\u00a0GOLF.com\u00a0game-improvement column that will help you\u00a0become a smarter, better golfer.<\/p>\n

As a golf-swing sicko, I love the offseason. Sure, it means less time on the course, but it also means plenty of time for tinkering with my swing. <\/p>\n

During these dark and cold months, I love going to the simulator a couple of times a week and taking inventory on what works and what doesn\u2019t. It\u2019s a time when I can experiment with swing tweaks and make meaningful changes. This time lets me hit the ground running in spring, with months worth of practice in the bank.<\/p>\n

Last winter, I was a stickler for fundamentals. Aim, alignment and grip were my guiding principles. It wasn\u2019t the most exhilarating practice, but it established a solid foundation that I leaned on all season long.<\/p>\n

My practice is a bit more fun this year. Heading into the 2026 season, my goal is adding swing speed.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve gone through this exercise before, and I added tiny bits of speed here and there in the past. This time around, though, I\u2019ve got a rock-solid plan and I\u2019m sticking to it \u2014 and the gains are already showing. So far, my max swing speed is up around 7 mph since the end of last season. <\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how I\u2019m doing it.<\/p>\n

How I\u2019m adding swing speed<\/p>\n

1. Refining technique<\/p>\n

Hitting the ball longer isn\u2019t just a matter of swinging faster. It\u2019s also important that you hone in your technique in order to swing the club efficiently. <\/p>\n

For help with that, I turned to GOLF Top 100 Teacher<\/a> Jonathan Yarwood at the end of last season. During our session, he noted that I was \u201clifting\u201d my arms during the backswing far too much and not getting deep enough. So, we shortened my arm swing and set my wrists my earlier.<\/p>\n

The result was a more on-plane swing \u2014 and one that generated much easier speed.<\/p>\n

2. Over-speed training<\/p>\n

Now this is the fun part. Getting in the simulator and swinging out of your shoes, with no regard for where the ball goes.<\/p>\n

Over-speed training is a method that long-drive pros swear by \u2014 and one that I\u2019ve found to be effective, too. The idea is that you swing as hard as you can throughout a speed training session, getting your body used to the feeling of going fast. Eventually, you break through the mental barriers holding you back, too.<\/p>\n

One thing I\u2019ve found helpful in these over-speed training sessions is turning off the shot tracer. The only numbers I care about are club speed and ball speed. As soon as I do that, I let go of the outcome of the shot, or caring about where the ball goes. That\u2019s when I start to really pump it.<\/p>\n

3. Hitting the gym<\/p>\n

I was never much one for the gym until last year. But ever since I started going to the gym a few days a week, I\u2019ve become hooked.<\/p>\n

Best of all, it\u2019s been great for my golf game. Under the guidance of PGA Tour strength coach David Sundberg,<\/a> I\u2019ve been strength training for golf over the past few months \u2014 and the gains have been noticeable. Not only have my club and ball speed jumped up, but my stamina has increased as well. <\/p>\n

If you really want to hit the ball longer, you\u2019ve got to build your engine in the gym. <\/p>\n

4. Sticking to the process <\/p>\n

My swing speed gains have not been linear \u2014 and that has been a bit of a frustration. Some days, I set a new personal best. The next day, I seemingly trend in the wrong direction. As I look back through my stats for the past several months, though, the trend line is going in the right direction. <\/p>\n

It can be easy to get discouraged when you have a poor speed session. It happens to me quite frequently! The key is to not let one bad day get your discouraged. Good processes yield good results, and as long as you stick to your plan, the speed gains will come.<\/p>\n

\"Stack<\/p>\n

Stack Radar | Launch Monitor | Club Speed Training<\/p>\n

Bluetooth Radar for Stack Training
\nThe Stack Radar is a great multi-purpose radar that Bluetooth connects directly to TheStack App for the most seamless training experience.\u00a0 Our PGA and LPGA Tour players love TheStack radar for it\u2019s portability and size.<\/p>\n

Capture swing speed without hitting a ball \u2013 perfect for Stack speed training!
\nPlace Stack Radar behind you on the range or course to measure Ball Speeds<\/p>\n

Measures: Swing Speed and Ball Speed.\u00a0 Calculates an estimated Carry Distance and Smash Factor.\u00a0 Incredibly accurate for ball speed.
\nSuperb tool for wedge distance control practice.
\nWorks great both indoors and outdoors. <\/p>\n

Bluetooth connection exclusively to TheStack App<\/p>\n

Set\u00a0speed trigger threshold\u00a0at 25, 35, 45, or 55 mph! Avoid false triggers due to a fast backswing.
\nIncludes radar pouch to protect the screen while stored<\/p>\n

Are you an current Stacker looking to upgrade?\u00a0 Explore our Launch Monitor trade in program here.<\/p>\n

View Product<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome to\u00a0Play\u00a0Smart, a regular\u00a0GOLF.com\u00a0game-improvement column that will help you\u00a0become a smarter, better golfer. As a golf-swing sicko, I…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":412244,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[443],"tags":[49,48,622,82],"class_list":["post-412243","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412243","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=412243"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/412243\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/412244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=412243"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=412243"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=412243"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}